STU 150 - Student Behavioral Intervention
Number: STU 150
Effective: September 1, 2023
Last Reviewed: August 14, 2023
Department: Student Affairs
Last Revision: August 14, 2023

Purpose

To establish a formal team and uniform process for the evaluation of and response to Reports of Students exhibiting concerning behaviors or experiencing exceptional circumstances which do not meet the criteria for evaluation by the Threat Assessment Team.

Scope

Applies to all students and employees of the College.

Definition

Best Practices: Specific processes, procedures, steps, resources, training, or other actions or activities recommended by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, as described in Section 1404 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023.

BIG Act: The name commonly used to refer to Section 1404 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, referencing the original title of the Behavioral Intervention Guidelines Act, upon which Section 1404 was based.

CARE Team: A designated standing committee, comprised of employees from specific areas, as defined by best practices, tasked with evaluating all Reports of Students exhibiting concerning behaviors or otherwise of concern to the college which do not immediately meet the criteria for Threat Assessment.

Report: Reports are generally submitted using the CARE and Concern Report form however the CARE team may also evaluate Reports received through other means, including security reports, misconduct reports, and referrals or reports received by other departments which are forwarded to the CARE team for review.

Student: Any person enrolled in any credit-bearing or non-credit-bearing course or program through the College.

Policy

The College of Western Idaho will maintain a standing CARE Team for the purpose of evaluating Reports of students who are exhibiting concerning behaviors, experiencing exceptional circumstances, or are otherwise of concern and coordinating an appropriate institutional response, using Best Practices.

Guidelines

Membership and Training

The College will establish and maintain a CARE Team to review Reports of concerning student behavior and to coordinate institutional responses to these Reports, in accordance with Best Practices. The CARE Team will be responsible for ensuring that related College procedures and standard practices comply with the BIG Act and Best Practices, including developing and implementing Reporting measures, coordinating trainings, identifying groups needing training, and recommending training as needed, in accordance with the BIG Act and Best Practices.

Members of the CARE Team will complete required training based on Best Practices as appropriate based on the nature of their work and role in the CARE Team. If Best Practices indicate the need for a broader training for some or all Students or employees, the CARE Team will be responsible for selecting and implementing such training.

CARE Team Operations

The CARE Team will meet at least bi-weekly, and more frequently as warranted, to ensure that Reports are addressed in an appropriate timeframe. A set meeting schedule will be selected by the CARE Team and may be modified as needed. The Chair of the CARE Team may call ad hoc meetings as needed to address emergent Reports.

The work of the CARE Team is not intended to replace, deter, or otherwise negatively affect the Threat Assessment process detailed in the OP 060 – Security policy, and all Reports meeting the criteria for Threat Assessment will be immediately referred to Campus Safety & Security. In cases where a situation escalates to a point of meeting the criteria for Threat Assessment, a referral will be made, and other coordinated support will be suspended pending the conclusion of the Threat Assessment process.

Reports referred to the CARE Team will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Once received, the CARE Team may refer a Report to a single office if it is within that offices’ sole purview, may coordinate support across multiple offices to achieve a satisfactory resolution, may forward a Report for review by the Threat Assessment Team, Student Conduct Process, or Title IX/Respectful Community prior to or concurrent with other actions, or may determine that no further action is necessary and either monitor or close the Report. The CARE Team will have primary responsibility for the resolution of Reports regarding Students referred to it, except in cases where Threat Assessment or Title IX proceedings are required.

The CARE Team will centrally maintain all Reports, documents collected, communications, and other information relating to each Report received and Student Referred. This information will be maintained in a secure format with access limited to members of the CARE Team.  However, such Reports are subject to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (“FERPA”) in addition to the Idaho Public Records Law, and a student requesting a Report shall be entitled to all Reports that pertain to that student.  All information will be stored, maintained, shared, and disclosed in accordance with the CW 090 – Records Retention, STU 090 – Student Records and Confidentiality, and HR 090 – Personnel Records policies.

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